Bangladesh court rules against mandatory religious clothing

The Bangladeshi Supreme Court [official website] ruled Sunday that workplaces and schools cannot force individuals to wear religious clothing such as veils and skull caps. The court found that wearing religious clothing is an individual choice and cannot be made mandatory [AFP report], and requiring individuals to wear religious clothing is a human rights violation [AsiaNews report] in contravention of the Bangladeshi Constitution [text]. The ruling comes after an incident in Northern Bangladesh where a college principal was forcing female students to wear veils. In April, the high court ruled that educational institutions could not force female employees to wear veils. The ruling came after an incident where a government official chastised a female headmistress for not wearing a scarf or veil during a staff meeting. Bangladeshi human rights groups applauded this most recent decision, while others argued it is an attack on Islamic values.

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